Nuggets guard Ty Lawson: "I think we're the best team in the West"

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Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson: "You can't just game-plan for one person on this team. I think we'll be No. 1 in the West." (Denver Post file)

Ty Lawson speaks in swag.

It could be literal: Hey, Ty, whudya think about the Nuggets' new jerseys?

"They're swagged out."

Or figurative: Hey, Ty, knowing there is the Thunder and Lakers, how do the Nuggets stack up in the Western Conference?

"I think we're the best team in the West."

Wait, really?

"We're so deep, so talented, so versatile," the point guard said at Monday's media day. "You can't just game-plan for one person on this team. I think we'll be No. 1 in the West."

If you're a Nuggets fan, you got to love this, right? Talent-wise, yeah, it's hard to say that Denver is better than L.A. or OKC. But when (arguably) your best player has that confidence, that swag, it permeates throughout the team.

They're talking the talk, yes, but it seems like the Nuggets aren't scared of these guys.

After all, Denver did take the Lakers to seven games in the playoffs last season. And the Nuggets won a huge game in April at Oklahoma City, the loudest arena I've ever been to.

Asked if his mentality is one that everyone must have to be successful, Lawson said, "Definitely — and I think everybody has it. We've all been working out this summer — you always see a Nugget in this gym. It used to be (in a negative way), 'Man, I need to go to the gym.' But now everybody is like, 'I want to go and get better.' It's just a different mentality. I love it."

Lawson will be crucial — cruuuuuucial — to the Nuggets' potential success this season. He exploded in the first-round series against the Lakers, with outpourings of 24, 25, 25 and 32 points (Denver lost in seven games).

Most players, when asked about his goals, talk about winning. Ty did say as much. But he was also honest about his stats. Stats lead to swag, after all, and vice versa.

"Right now, I just want to win," he said. "Everybody does talk about point averages, assists. I want everything to go up, at least around 18 and eight, something around there. I feel like it's easy with this team because everyone's unselfish and everyone can score. It's a goal I can accomplish."

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